China’s Economy Starts 2016 at Slowest Pace in Years

By Reuters

Jan. 1, 2016

China, the world’s second-largest economy, looked set for a weak start to 2016 after activity in the manufacturing sector contracted for a fifth straight month in December, suggesting the government may have to step up policy support to avert a sharper slowdown. While China’s services sector ended 2015 on a strong note, the economy still appeared to be on track to grow at its slowest pace in a quarter of a century. The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index stood at 49.7 in December, up only fractionally from November. Zhou Hao, a senior economist at Commerzbank in Singapore, said that the slight improvement in manufacturing suggested that growth was stabilizing, but “the sector is still facing strong headwinds.” Weak demand at home and abroad has weighed on China’s factories, adding to the problem of excess capacity and forcing them to cut prices. Total new orders rose to 50.2 in December from November’s 49.8, the survey showed, but export orders shrank for the 15th straight month.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page B2 of the New York edition with the headline: China’s Economy Ends 2015 at Slowest Pace in Years. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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